AOL Supports the St. Jude Children's Hospital Thanks and Giving Campaign

NEW YORK, NY (Gawkwire.com) AOL announced the launch of "Nice One! Stories of Thanks and Giving," http://niceone.aol.com, a new site that gathers stories of nice things people have done from the world of entertainment, sports and everyday life, and encourages users to submit their own stories. The site, developed in partnership with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®, is part of a broad effort by AOL to support the hospital's fifth annual Thanks and Giving® campaign.

Nice One! highlights real-life stories to help promote the spirit of giving during the holiday season, such as the story of a family who tipped their struggling waitress $10,000, and the story of a professional basketball coach who helped a 13 year-old sing the national anthem when she forgot the words. The site also features original content from St. Jude, including patient stories, videos and other resources, as well as information on how to donate directly to St. Jude.

"St. Jude is an amazing hospital that is doing incredible work to find treatment and cures for children suffering some of the most deadly diseases known to man. And we're proud to support their efforts by leveraging AOL's vast network to raise awareness and funds during the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign," said AOL Chairman and CEO Randy Falco. "I'm particularly proud of the Nice One! site, which offers fresh, compelling content and puts users in the mood for giving. We hope that people will be inspired and share Nice One! with their friends and family, creating greater awareness for St. Jude this holiday season."

"The children of St. Jude, their Moms and Dads and I are thrilled to once again have AOL's support for our Thanks and Giving campaign," said Marlo Thomas, National Outreach Director for St. Jude. "AOL's dedication to this holiday campaign helps ensure that St. Jude can continue the lifesaving research and care that has brought hope to so many families."

Other planned St. Jude programming and promotions on AOL include:

AOL Shopping, http://shopping.aol.com, will feature "Gifts that Give Back" from St. Jude.

AOL's personal finance site WalletPop, http://www.walletpop.com/, will feature a year-end charitable giving guide and information on giving to St. Jude.

Parent Dish, http://www.parentdish.com/, will blog about a St. Jude patient family.

AOL Health, http://health.aol.com, will show users just how far their contributions can go at the hospital.

AIM Programming areas, http://www.aim.com, and People Connection will promote the St. Jude Buddy icon and additional St. Jude resources.

Holiday-themed AOL Radio stations will run St. Jude PSA spots.

AOL's social media network Bebo, http://www.bebo.com, will feature an interactive St. Jude profile where users can send get-well wishes to others.

MapQuest, http://www.mapquest.com, will feature St. Jude promotions on its Home, Maps and Directions main pages.

In addition, AOL plans to host several innovative St. Jude promotions -- homepage takeovers on AOL.com, a customized skin, integrated e-mail promotions, banners and more – that leverage AOL's digital advertising business, Platform-A, http://www.platform-a.com.